Budget Proposal Moves Safe Drinking Water Program

Last year, the Department of Public Health came under fire for failing to spend almost a half billion dollars to provide drinking water to communities that need it.

Under Brown’s budget proposal, the State Water Resources Control Board would run the program in the future.

Jennifer Clary, with Clean Water Action, says she’s glad the program will be taken from the Department of Public Health.

"There, the drinking water program was a program, within the division under an agency in a department so it was such a lot of red tape to go through to accomplish things that we just got discouraged."

~Jennifer Clary, Clean Water Action

The proposal transfers $200-million and almost 300 positions. Brown’s budget says programs designed to protect drinking water are managed now by a number of agencies, a situation which reduces their effectiveness.

California Governor Jerry Brown and Democratic legislative leaders have yet to announce a state budget deal – even though many of their compromises have been ratified by a joint Senate-Assembly conference committee

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Amy came to Sacramento from New Hampshire Public Radio (NHPR) where she was Environment Reporter. Amy has also reported for NPR member stations WFAE in Charlotte, WAMU in Washington D.C. and American Public Media's "Marketplace." Read Full Bio